Men's Hoops Welcomes Back Ben Howland for Coaches Clinic, Dinner

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Head men's basketball coach Jack Murphy and the Northern Arizona men's basketball program is proud to host their third annual Coaches Dinner on Thursday, July 31, followed by the two-day Coaches Clinic on Aug. 1-2. Speaking at this year's dinner will be former UCLA, Pittsburgh and NAU head coach Ben Howland at Pine Canyon Golf Club.

Howland is the third coach to speak at the dinner following current Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr last year and NBA legend George Karl in 2012. At the dinner, attendees will be able to hear stories from Howland and participate in a Q&A with the former Lumberjack coach.

Howland spent five years at Northern Arizona from 1995-99 and led the Lumberjacks to three straight seasons with 20-plus wins. The former Lumberjack coach guided NAU to its first Big Sky Tournament Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in the 1997-98 season. That squad was inducted into the NAU Hall of Fame in 2004.

The annual Lumberjack Basketball Coaches Clinic began in the summer of 2012 by Murphy and his staff. The clinic aims at providing a platform for coaches to gather together and continue to learn in the game of basketball and leadership. The Lumberjacks Coaches Clinic features on-court demonstrations from some of the top coaches at the NBA, collegiate and high schools ranks.

This year, Murphy and his staff have assembled the deepest pool of coaches with three coaches in the NBA and eight collegiate coaches. The big names coming to Flagstaff include Howland, current Toronto Raptors assistant coach Jesse Mermuys, former Arizona head coach and current head coach of Central Arkansas Russ Pennell and David Grace, an assistant coach at UCLA who previously coached in the high school ranks in Phoenix.

If you would like to attend the dinner with Ben Howland, tickets are $75 per person and space is limited. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact Landon Cosby at Landon.Cosby@nau.edu. For coaches looking to sign up for the Coaches Clinic, contact mbasketball@nau.edu.